Collapsible article of furniture including an inflatable member



Jan. 7, 1969 v. SMITH 3,420,574

GOLLAPSIBLE ARTICLE OF FURNITURE INCLUDING AN INFLATABLE MEMBER Filed July 20, 1967 Sheet orz INVENTOR: l///V6 JM/ TH ATTORNEYS V. SMITH COLLAPSIBLE ARTICLE OF FURNITURE INCLUD'ING Jan. 7, 1969 AN INFLATABLE MEMBER Z of 2 Sheet Filed July 20, 1967 TTORNEYS INVENTOR w/vc; 5114/ TH rtllllllllll Ills iifii7T United States Patent 3,420,574 CGLIJAPSIBLE ARTICLE OF FURNITURE INCLUDING AN INFLATABLE MEMBER Ving Smith, 2 Agar Ave, New Rochelle, NY. 10801 Filed July 20, 1967, Ser. No. 654,819 US. Cl. 297-456 Int. Cl. A47c 4/54 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Flat base has a channel in its upper face adapted to engage track carried by inflatable member, so as to join the two. Channel may be U-shaped, and inflatable member may be an air mattress with track on one of its long edges. Inflatable seat cushion may have wire stith eners extending through pockets secured along edges of cushion.

fers firm support to the parts of the body contacting the chair.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such an article of which can be manufactured relatively inexpensively with respect to the size of furniture involved.

In carrying out the invention, a flat board, serving as a base, is formed with a channel or channels in its upper face. The inflatable member is secured to the base by means of a track on its lower face adapted to cooperate with the channel. The channel may be U-shaped, and the inflatable member a. relatively long air mattress type element having the track along one of its long edges. Consequently, when track and channel are engaged, the inflatable member forms an upstanding U-shaped wall on the base which may serve as the arms and back of a chair. An inflatable cushion may then be inserted between the inflated arms of the chair to form its seat.

In the alternative, the base may have two parallel channels, and the inflatable member may be a combined seat and back element having two tracks on its lower face adapted to engage the channels. In either embodiment the cushion may have elongated pockets along certwin of its edges housing rigid wire stifleners for reinforcing the cushion. In addition, rigid stiffener slats may be provided along portions of the U-shaped air mattress.

Other objects and features of the invention will be pointed out in the following detailed description, in which reference is made to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective exploded view of the components of one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the assembled components;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 33 of FIG. 2 and showing the track and channel engaged;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the seat and back cushion provided with stiffener wires;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 55 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of an alternative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 7 is an elevational view of the embodiment of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of still another embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 1010 of FIG. 9.

Representative of an article of furniture according to this invention is the chair illustrated in FIGS. 13. The chair base 19 is a flat board made of wood, metal, or a suitable plastic. A U-shaped channel 11 is formed in the upper face of the base, the ends of the channel terminating at one edge of the base. In cross-section, the channel 11 (see FIG. 3) is shaped with a relatively large interior joining the upper surface of the base at a narrow neck.

The back and arm regions of the chair are formed by an air mattress type inflatable element 12. The element 12 is an air-tight enclosure formed of any suitable material, such as vinyl sheeting or rubberized canvas, and its surface may be tufted, as shown, or quilted, by heat sealing the opposite walls together leaving openings between the seals for passage of air when inflating the element. If desired, a wire reinforcement (not shown) may extend along each of the heat sealed tufting lines, and held in place by the heat seals. The inflatable element 12 is relatively long and wide with respect to its thickness, and a track 13 is mounted on, and extends along, one of the long edges of the element. The cross-sectional shape of the track 13 conforms to that of the channel 11, i.e., the track has a bulbous outer portion joined to a connection flange by a narrow neck. The flange is secured to the inflatable element 11, such as by heat sealing or a suitable adhesive. The element 11 may be inflated and deflated through a valve 14 of any conventional design.

To interconnect the base 10 and inflatable element 12, one end of the track 13 is inserted into one end of the channel 11, and the track is then slid longitudinally along the channel until the relationship shown in FIG. 2 is achieved. In this way, the element 12 constitutes an upstanding wall on the base 10, the wall defining arm portions 15 and a back region 16 of the chair. The outer end edges to the arm portion of element 12, the straps 17, which may be strips of material heat sealed at their end edges to the arm portions of element 12, the straps serving to support rigid slats 18 for the purpose of reinforcing the element 12.

A separate inflatable seat cushion 22 is adapted to fit between the arm portions 15 of the inflatable member 12, and rest on the base 10. The seat cushion may be formed with a back cushion portion 23. To aid in maintaining the final assembly of parts, the seat cushion 22 is provided with fasteners, such as spring clip hooks 24, which engage cooperable fasteners, such as eyelets 25, on the inner surface of the arm portion 15.

It will be appreciated that when the inflatable members 12 and 22 are deflated, these members together with the slats 18 and base 10 can be packed very compactly. On the other hand, the inflated and assembled chair shown in FIG. 2 is an attractive and comfortable, full-size arm chair.

The seat cushion may be reinforced as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The seat cushion 28 is provided with pockets 29 along its horizontal side edges, and along the vertical side edges of its back portion 30. The pockets 29 are formed by long narrow strips heat sealed, or otherwise joined, along their longitudinal edges (see FIG. 5) to the material of the cushion 28. Rigid U-shaped reinforcement Wires, or tubes, 31 are furnished, the arms of which are slipped into the pockets 29 in the direction of 3 the arrows in FIG. 4. The elements 31 thereby serve to reinforce the edges of the inflatable cushion.

FIGS. 6-8 illustrate the invention embodied in a double chair or love seat. The base 34, in this case, has two joined, but oppositely facing, U-shaped channels 35, which may also be thought of as an S-shaped channel. Upon complete interengagement of the channel 35 with the track 36, on one longitudinal edge of the inflatable element 37, the element 37 assumes an S-shape and defines the arms and backs of two attached side-by-side chairs facing in opposite directions. Inflatable seat cushions 38 sized and configured to fit between the arms defined by the element 37 complete the piece of furniture. The parts of the seat shown in FIGS. 6-8 may, of course, be provided with fasteners 24 and 25, as well as reinforcements 18 and 31, as described above.

The chair of FIGS. 9 and includes a base 41 having two straight parallel channels 42 in its upper face. In this case, the inflatable element, or cushion, 43 has two straight parallel tracks 44 on its lower face adapted to cooperate with the channels 42 to join the base 41 and cushion 43.

Secured to each side edge of the base 41 is a rigid sleeve 45 adapted to accommodate rigid tubular structural members. The front portion of each sleeve 45 snugly holds a member having a plurality of bends defining an upstanding post 46 terminating in an outwardly projecting arm 47. The rear portion of each sleeve 45 snugly holds a bent member defining an upstanding post 48. Extending horizontally across, and secured to, the posts 48 is a bar 49, the ends of the bar 49 extending beyond the posts 48. The bar 49 serves to support the back portion 50 of the cushion 43. The arms of the chair are formed by rigid or flexible straps 51, each strap having a loop at each end to accommodate one of the arms 47 and one end of the bar 49.

The invention has been shown and described in preferred form only, and by way of example, and many variations may be made in the invention which will still be comprised within its spirit. It is understood, therefore, that the invention is not limited to any specific form or embodiment except insofar as such limitations are included in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A collapsible article of furniture comprising a rigid non-inflatable base, first fastening means carried by said base, said first fastening means being arranged in a predetermined pattern, an inflatable member independent of said base and adapted to support a person sitting on the furniture, said inflatable member being deformable into a shape conforming to said predetermined pattern, and second fastening means on said inflatable member cooperable upon deformation of said inflatable member with said first fastening means for joining said inflatable mem ber to said base.

2. An article of furniture as defined in claim 1 wherein said inflatable member is relatively long and wide in relation to its thickness, and said second fastening means is located along one of the long edges of said inflatable member, whereby when said base and inflatable member are joined, the latter forms an upstanding wall on the former.

3. A collapsible article of furniture comprising a flat board base, first fastening means in the form of a channel in the upper face of said base, said channel being at least partially U-shaped and terminating at at least one end at an edge of said base, an inflatable member adapted to support a person sitting on the furniture, said inflatable member being relatively long and Wide in relation to its thickness, and second fastening means in the form of a track adapted to engage said channel, said track being located along one of the long edges of said inflatable member, whereby when said channel and track are engaged, said inflatable member forms an upstanding wall on the base and at least part of said inflatable member assumes a U-shape.

4. An article of furniture as defined in claim 3 including an inflatable cushion adapted to be accommodated between the arms of said U-shaped inflatable member, and means for removably fastening said cushion to said inflatable member.

5. An article of furniture as defined in claim 3 including an inflatable cushion adapted to be accommodated between the arms of said U-shaped inflatable member, rigid stiffener wires extending along the edges of said cushion, and means for securing said stiifeners to said cushion.

6. A collapsible article of furniture comprising a substantially flat board base, first fastening means in the form of a pair of parallel channels in the upper face of said base, said channels terminating at an edge of said base, an inflatable seat cushion, and second fastening means in the form of a pair of parallel tracks on the bottom of said cushion adapted to cooperate with said channels.

7. An article of furniture as defined in claim 6 including a pair of upstanding rigid posts at each side of said base, and an arm support extending between each pair of posts.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,623,574 12/1952 Damsch 297456 2,843,181 7/1958 Paschen 297456 2,982,341 5/1961 Besser 5348 2,987,735 6/1961 Nail 5--348 3,323,147 6/1967 Van Dean 5-98 CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

